ZAGREB, Aug 22 (Hina) - I am standing behind what I have said - that during my talks with the Hague-based Tribunal's chief prosecutor Carla del Ponte no mention was made of General Petar Stipetic, Croatian Premier Ivica Racan told
reporters on Tuesday. Croatian Social Liberal Party (HSLS) President Drazen Budisa was not wrong either, Racan said explaining that during some unofficial conversations in various contexts the name of General Stipetic was mentioned. But his name was not mentioned as of somebody against whom an investigation was launched or as of a possible indictee, the Croatian Prime Minister said. He added that leaders of six parties which constitute the ruling coalition, agreed during their meeting on Tuesday that the exacerbation of this problem and attempts to provoke a conflict with the ICTY (the International War Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia) would be of no use to Croatia. The leaders
ZAGREB, Aug 22 (Hina) - I am standing behind what I have said - that
during my talks with the Hague-based Tribunal's chief prosecutor
Carla del Ponte no mention was made of General Petar Stipetic,
Croatian Premier Ivica Racan told reporters on Tuesday.
Croatian Social Liberal Party (HSLS) President Drazen Budisa was
not wrong either, Racan said explaining that during some unofficial
conversations in various contexts the name of General Stipetic was
mentioned. But his name was not mentioned as of somebody against
whom an investigation was launched or as of a possible indictee, the
Croatian Prime Minister said.
He added that leaders of six parties which constitute the ruling
coalition, agreed during their meeting on Tuesday that the
exacerbation of this problem and attempts to provoke a conflict
with the ICTY (the International War Criminal Tribunal for former
Yugoslavia) would be of no use to Croatia.
The leaders of the six ruling parties (SDP, HSLS, HNS, HSS, LS, IDS)
on Tuesday agreed that recent weeks had seen too much guesswork and
misunderstanding in communication concerning the case of General
Stipetic, Racan said.
He added that an open conversation like Tuesday's talks was much
better than a short conversation on the phone which can be
interpreted in different manners.
Two weeks ago, the weekly Globus stated the Hague-based
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia was
investigating the role of the Croatian Army's incumbent chief-of-
staff, General Petar Stipetic, as part of investigations into
crimes committed during the liberation of Croatia's Serb-occupied
territory in 1995. The statement elicited numerous reactions.
An entire series of contradictory statements followed when the HSLS
leader Budisa said that Prime Minister Ivica Racan had told him
Stipetic's name had been mentioned during talks Croatia's senior
officials held with ICTY's chief prosecutor Carla Del Ponte in
Zagreb. President Stjepan Mesic and Prime Minister Racan claimed
Stipetic was not mentioned during those talks.
On Tuesday PM Racan reiterated that the Government possessed no
information that the Hague-based Tribunal had completed probes
into war crimes and that indictments would be issued against
anybody in Croatia.
He stressed that it was known that certain enquires were being
conducted but they were about war crimes rather than individuals or
the Homeland War or liberation operations, because the Government
would not cooperate in such matter. There are investigations but
there are also to many speculations who is the target of those
probes, he said.
Engaged in the entire case were those who, for various reasons,
would like to see the provocation of conflict between Croatia and
the Tribunal. But they are not going to get away with that, Racan
emphasised adding that the ruling coalition would not be scared and
would not let such factors frustrate it.
The coalition is resolute to establish the truth about crimes and
possible perpetrators, either on its own or in co-operation with
the Hague-based Tribunal, the Croatian PM added.
At today's talks we assessed that the Government had done all it
could, via its Council for the co-operation with the Tribunal and it
will continue with such efforts in order to shed light as well as to
prevent an extensive interpretation of the so-called objective
responsibility in the chain of command, Racan said.
We are in favour of punishment of those who have committed crimes,
and if it is possible they should be punished in Croatia, but we do
not want this issue to be exploited for "political skirmishes" such
happened in recent months and we are not for the extensive
interpretation of the objective commanding liability.
There have been and there will be problems with the Tribunal, but we
shall settle all open issues and differences through cooperation
rather than conflict with the ICTY, Racan said.
The conflict with the Hague-based Tribunal and subsequently with
the international community is out of question, as it will be
detrimental to Croatia, as well as to individuals who might be a
target of investigations but who are not war crimes perpetrators.
This coalition will not allow such course of events, and while
working together with the Tribunal we shall protect Croatia's
interests and preserve the dignity of the country in the best
manner, Racan explained.
We believe that the ruling six-party coalition enjoys support in
the country for such policy, the Premier said expressing his stand
that another policy which would hush up what a democratic and rule-
based state cannot conceal, would not get support.
Insistence on the conflict with the Hague-based Tribunal is of no
use to Croatia. It, however, is of use to such policy which
concealed real crimes until recently and thus did damage to Croatia
and pushed the country into isolation.
In this context the Croatian Premier added that the incumbent
authorities had inherited from the former ones deficits in the
relationship with the Hague-based Tribunal such as weak spots of
the rule of law in Croatia, a lack of investigative activities as
regards committed crimes or the concealment or even elimination of
some findings which could help investigations.
Therefore we have concluded that we should continue working
together with the Tribunal in accordance with the Declaration and
the Constitutional Law on the co-operation with that court, Racan
added.
Those persons who might be held responsible for committed crimes
and white-collar crime, are trying to bring into question the
survival of the ruling coalition via issues pertaining to the
cooperation with the ICTY, he said.
We are sorry that General Stipetic, who acted in honourable manner
during the defence of Croatia, has been involved in all of this. All
who have spoken about him in the wrong context and thus done huge
damage to him, should apologise to Stipetic, the Premier added.
Asked by reporters Racan responded that this case would do no harm
to the relations inside the six-party coalition, if they were able
to learn a lesson.
Asked whether this meeting was taped since Budisa had announced he
would require that it should be recorded, Racan answered that all of
them agreed that Tuesday's talks did not need to be taped as
relations inside the coalition were not at such a level of distrust
that it might be necessary to record their conversation.
Present at the meeting were presidents of the Social Democratic
Party (SDP), Croatian Social Liberal Party (HSLS), Croatian
Peasants' Party (HSS), Croatian People's Party (HNS), and the
Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), Ivica Racan, Drazen Budisa,
Zlatko Tomcic, Vesna Pusic and Ivan Jakovcic respectively, as well
as the acting president of the Liberal Party (LS), Zlatko
Kramaric.
(hina) ms